Road guard fence



May 30, 1939. R. R. ROBERTSON ROAD GUARD FENCE Filed May 24. 1937 y y F y ROBERT R. ROBERTSON Patented May 30, 1939 PATENT OFFICE ROAD GUARD FENCE Robert R. Robertson, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Translode Joint Company, Chicago Heights, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application May 24, 1937, Serial No. 144,425

7 Claims.

This invention relates to a road or highway guard fence for use at curves or dangerous locations adjacent a road. The improved guard fence is so constructed that when moving vehicles acci- 5. dentally leave the road pavement and run into the guard fence, the impact shocks are absorbed by the fence, thus affording an arrangement whereby the seriousness of accidents is greatly minimized and sometimes entirely averted.

10` It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved road guard fence wherein a continuous rail unit is mounted between end posts and is supported at its ends free from normal longitudinal strains by means of strain resisting or draft gear mechanisms such for example as the mechanisms usually used for coupling railroad cars together for the purpose of transmitting pulls or thrusts from one car to another through the medium of encased groups of either coil or plate springs which are separated by follower blocks and are operable by coupling bars when said bars are subjected to tension or thrust strains.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved highway guard fence wherein the end posts have draft gear units mounted thereon, to which the ends of a continuous rail are connected, while intermediate portions of the rail are connected by hinge mechanisms to intermediate posts disposed to one side of the rail.

It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved road guard fence wherein a continuous rail unit is mounted, free from normal tension, on end and intermediate posts by means of hinge and draft gear mechanisms.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a highway guard fence wherein a rail unit is supported on intermediate posts by means of hinge mechanisms, while the ends of the rail 40. unit have secured thereto draft gear yoke members which are adapted to be engaged in draft gear casings for coaction with buffing and pullresisting members disposed within the end posts draft gear casings.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a road guard fence wherein a continuous rail unit is mounted on intermediate posts by means of hinge mechanisms, while the ends of the rail unit are connected with draft gear units mounted on the fence end posts, thereby aiording a fence construction wherein the rail unit is mounted free from normal tension, and wherein shocks and stresses applied to the rail unit are taken up by the buiiing and pull-resisting mechanisms` contained within the draft gear unit-hous- (Cl. 25d-13.1)

ings associated with the end posts of the fence construction. s A

Other and further important objects of this invention will be apparent from the disclosures in the specification and the accompanying draw- 5 ing.

The invention (in a preferred form) is illustrated in the drawing and hereinafter more fully described.

On the drawing: l0

Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan View of one end ofA an improved road guard fence embodying the principles of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a front elevation of the end portion of the road guard fence illustrated in Fig- 15 ure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged top plan View of one of the end posts and the draft gear unit supported thereon, shown connected with one endV of the fence rail unit. s 20 Figure 4 is a reduceddvertical sectional View takenon the line IVY-IV of Figure 3.

Figure 5 isan enlarged top plan view of one of the intermediate*v fence posts and the hinge unit thereof for supporting the rail unit at an 25 intermediate point.

As shown on the drawing:

The reference numeral I indicates the shoulder of a road or highway, said shoulder having constructed thereon adjacent the side of the road 30 an improved guard fence for the prevention and reduction of the seriousness of accidents at curves or dangerous locations along the length of the highway. The guard fence comprises a plurality of spaced intermediate posts 2 construct- 35 ed of wood or other suitable material and arranged in a straighty or curved line, depending on the surrounding circumstances. Positioned at the ends of the fence are end posts 3 which are located out ofV alignment with or to one side of 40 the intermediate row of posts 2.

Rigidly secured to the intermediate posts 2 by means of bolts 4 or other suitable fastening mechanisms are double or three plate hinge units each comprising end plates 5 and Ehingedly con- 45 'nected to anintermediate or main hinge plate 'l by hinge joints 8. As clearly illustrated in Figure 5, the end hinge plate 5 is bolted to one side of an intermediate post 2, while the opposite end'hinge plate l is riveted or otherwise 5D.'

described, while the outer ends of the two endmost rail plates 9 project to within a short distance of the end posts 3.

Rigidly secured on each of the end posts 3 by means of bolts I6 or other suitable fastening means is a draft gear unit comprising a back or mounting plate I I and a flanged casing or housing I2, the flange of which is apertured and seated against the back plate II to be held clamped in position upon the end post 3 by the mounting bolts I0. Integrally formed on the top and bottom of the draft gear casing or housing I 2 is an upper and a lower guide trough or channel I3 which extends from the back of the casing forwardly to the front end thereof and are open at their outer ends, at I4. The openings I4 at the outer ends of the guide channels I3 of the draft gear casing or housing are in register with the upper and lower ends of a vertical slot or opening in the front wall of the casing between stop walls I5 forming the front end of the draft gear casing I2. The walls I5 serve as stop Walls for the interior mechanisms of the draft gear unit.

Mounted within the interior of the draft gear casing or housing I2 are buing and pull-resisting gear sets. The bufng gear sets are mounted at the supported end of the casing or housing I2 and consist of a concave end or stop block I6 having positioned in front of the concave surface thereof a group or set of bufng leaves or friction plates I'I. Mounted in the front or outer end of the draft gear casing or housing I2 is a pull-resisting group consisting of a concave end or stop block I8, the concave surface of which faces inwardly and is positioned adjacent a group or set of pull-resisting leaves or friction plates I9. The front or outer side of the stop block I8 seats against the inner surfaces of the two end walls I5 of the draft gear casing or housing I2, as clearly illustrated in Figure 4.

Separating the bufng and pulling draft gear sets within the casing or housing I2 is a double convex separator or spacer block 20 which, as shown in Figure 3, separates the groups or sets of friction plates I'I and I9. Projecting axially through the double convex block 2|) is a rod 2I, to the upper and lower ends of which are connected the ends of upper and lower yoke arms 22. -The yoke arms 22 are slidably engaged in the guide channels I3 of the draft gear casing or housing, and the outer ends of said arms project out of the end openings I 4 of the guide channels and are rigidly or integrally connected with a yoke connecting bar 23 which is riveted or otherwise rigidly secured to the end margin of the end rail plate 9. It will also be seen that the ends of the continuous fence rail unit are connected by means of the draft gear yokes, with the bung and pull-resisting gear sets or units disposed within the draft gear housings on opposite sides of the separator or spacer blocks 20. The continuous rail unit is thus mounted in position, free from normal tension, supported at the ends by the draft gear units, and supported intermediate the ends at spaced intervals by means of the hinge units which connect the rail unit with the intermediate posts 2 When a moving automobile accidentally runs into the guard fence and strikes the rail unit, the resiliency of the rail plate 9 causes the same to bend or flex at the point of contact, thereby causing movement of the hinge plates 1 to permit the rail unit to move longitudinally between the end posts. The shifting movement, of course, is in the direction of the impact forces so that the movement of the rail unit causes the yoke members on the ends thereof to operate the double convex separator or spacer blocks 20 of the draft gear units to bend or iiex one set or the other of the friction plates which are mounted between the double convex spacer block 20 and the end or stop blocks I6 and I8. An outward pulling movement of the draft gear yoke or frame is resisted by the friction plates I9 which, by the outward movement of the double convex block 20, are flexed or bent toward the concave surface of the outer end block I 8. On the other hand, when the rail plates 9 are made strong enough to produce an inward thrust of the yoke, an inward movement of the separator block 20 will take place to cause the inner convex surface of said block to actuate the friction plates I1 to tend to ex the same inwardly toward the concave surface of the inner end block I6.

It will thus be noted that the impact forces resulting from the accidental bumping of the rail unit of the guard fence are thus first absorbed by the flexible rail plates and then by the draft gear mechanisms at the. ends of the rail unit. The improved draft gear and hinge supporting units for the rail unit permits longitudinal shifting movement of the rail unit when impacted by a moving vehicle, and also permits contraction and expansion of the rail unit, with the expansion and contraction of the rail plates due to temperature changes.

It will, of course, be understood that numerous details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon, otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

l. A road guard fence comprising a pair of end posts, friction plate units supported on the end posts, a rail unit supported by said units free from normal tensioning thereby, and means for supporting the rail unit at points intermediate the ends thereof.

2. A road guard fence comprising a plurality of posts, friction plate units supported thereon and including operating yokes projecting from the units, and a rail unit connected to the yokes Without normally tensioning the rail unit.

3. A road guard fence comprising a plurality of supporting posts, housings supported on said posts, sets of friction plates and separators enclosed by the housings, a rail unit, and yoke members connected with the rail unit without tensioning the same and projecting into the housings for operating the plate and separator sets when forces are applied to the rail unit to tension the same.

4. A highway guard fence comprising a plurality of supporting posts, a plurality of housings secured to said posts, stop and separator blocks enclosed by said housings, groups of friction plates engaged in the housings between said blocks, yoke members slidably projecting from said housings and connected with selected blocks in said housings, and a rail unit supported free from tension by the projecting ends of the yoke members.

5. A highway guard fence comprising a plurality of supporting posts, a rail unit, and mechanisms connecting the posts with said rail unit, each of said mechanisms comprising a housing, concave and convex blocks enclosed by the housing, groups of friction plates in the' housing separated by said blocks, and an operating yoke connected with one of said blocks and projecting from the housing and secured to the rail unit to support the same free from normal tension.

6. A road guard fence including in combination a post, a guard rail unit supported free from normal tension, a housing secured to the post, a yoke member connected to the guard rail unit and slidably projecting into the housing, and friction plate units in said housing governing the movement of the guard rail unit With respect to said post when the guard rail unit is shifted longitudinally.

7. In a road guard fence, a fence end construction comprising a post, a rail member, a housing secured to said post, a yoke rigidly secured to the end of the rail member and slidably projecting into the housing to support the rail member free from normal tension, a double convex spacerblock in said housing operable by the movement of said yoke, a plurality of concave blocks in said housing on opposite sides of the double convex spacer block, and groups of shock absorbing friction plates in said housing between the double convex spacer block and the concave blocks operable by said yoke when the rail member is subjected to longitudinal forces.

ROBERT R. ROBERTSON. 

